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Welcome to the Michigan Chapter Web site

Welcome to the home page for the Michigan Chapter of the Penn State Alumni Association. Welcome to our new webpage!

We represent all of Michigan, including the Detroit, Flint, Lansing, and Saginaw areas.

Our current membership stands at just under 200 members. The Pride is Alive in Michigan!

If you are in the area, look us up! See the tabs above for activities and more information.

Stay tuned for a possible shake up with the PSAA-MI website. We are looking to freshen it up a bit!


Hello fellow chapter members

A MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAPTER PRESIDENT

Hello fellow chapter members!  I wanted to take the time to write to you and convey how excited I am to have become your chapter President.  If you were at the Send Off Picnic or Happy Hour in August you may have heard some of the ideas and things that I'd like to accomplish as your chapter President.  At our most recent board meeting, I formally presented my agenda for 2008/2009 to the board.  In the months ahead we'll be looking to implement these ideas and work towards improving our chapter.  I wanted to provide to you all a brief summary of my goals for the next year.

      

1)  Growth - In the next year I'd like to see our chapter grow at least 33%.  Currently we have just under 200 members.  At a minimum, I would like to see the chapter reach 250 members by July 2009.  As we grow in numbers, we will be able to do more things as a chapter.  A key area of growth is with our local students at Penn State.  We need to continue to foster their development so they want to become active members in our chapter.

      

Additionally, there are many Penn Staters in the state that are not aware of our chapter or just have fallen off the radar.  We want to reach out to them to try and bring them into our chapter.  This will not be an easy task.  We will need every chapter member's help to continue to grow.  So if you know an alum or an avid Penn State fan that’s not a member, invite them to an event or pass along our chapter information.  Let's continue to grow!

      

2)  Scholarships -  In 2008 the chapter awarded $8,000 in scholarships to local students attending Penn State.  This is a great accomplishment for our chapter!  It was through the generous efforts of our chapter members that allowed us to reach this all-time high, which are extremely grateful for.  However, like anything in life, we want to continue to exceed our grasps!  My personal goal is to award $10,000 in scholarships by 2009.  Previously, our chapter's goal was to award $10,000 by 2010. Both are admirable goals, but I know the spirit and efforts of our chapter will allow us to exceed both of them. 

      

As the tough economic times continue, it will be increasingly difficult to continue to grow this scholarship through pledges from our current chapter members alone. That is why it is imperative that we continue to grow in numbers and strive to make our 2009 events extremely successful.  With two football games coming to Michigan and other scheduled fundraising events, we will continue to strive to reach our goals!

      

3) Increase Social Activities/ Aware-ness.  Over the next year, I want to continue to increase the number of social activities we do as a chapter. In the months ahead, we will be rolling out a calendar with multiple events that will be sure to entice many of you.  Some of the upcoming events will include our football game watches, community service projects, group events with other Big Ten chapters and supporting our local athletic teams as they come to Michigan. Also being discussed has been the idea of doing a group outing to a musical/play and Professional Networking Night.  If you have any ideas, contact me or your board members and let us know!  We're eager to hear your ideas.

      

4)  Increase Student Involvement - I feel one of the most important roles our chapter can serve is to help grow and develop our students.  They are the future for Penn State and for our society as a whole.  We need to continue to encourage and support them as best as we can.  I've discussed the idea of starting a mentorship program for our students.  I know many of our students are studying many of the same disciplines we did in our undergraduate programs.  What better way to support our students then by being a mentor.  So if you are interested in being a mentor to one our students, please let us know!  Additionally, I want to try and do 1 chapter event each semester at University Park.  I know many of us travel back throughout the year to visit the campus or we are stopping by on the way to visit friends or family.  I think it would be important for our students to see us on campus as well as when they come home.  We'll likely look to do something next spring so keep an eye out for that.

      

These are my main goals I'd like to focus on.  It will be a tough task, but I know we can work together to accomplish these things.  Your support of the chapter has been outstanding over the years and I'm counting on it to continue to lead us into the future.  The board and I are always eager to hear your ideas and thoughts, so please contact us.  Thanks again for your support & efforts.

For the Glory,
Jason Rupp

Contact Information
Penn State Alumni Association of Michigan
 


Email: psuofmich@yahoo.com



 


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